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Scriptapalooza Features & Shorts Competition
Scriptapalooza Features/Shorts
Contact
Hollywood, CA 90046
(310) 565.3420 (voice)
Web:
http://www.scriptapalooza.com
Email:
info@scriptapalooza.com
Contact: Mark Andrushko, President and CEO
Report Card |
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| Overall: |
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(5.0/5.0) |
| Professionalism: |
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(4.5/5.0) |
| Feedback: |
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(4.1/5.0) |
| Signficance: |
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(4.8/5.0) |
| Report Cards: |
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Have you entered?
Submit a Report card
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Objective
Scriptapalooza was founded in 1998 with the goal of helping as many writers as possible through the competition. We have over 90 production companies, agents and managers reading all the entered scripts. (A complete list of participants is on Scriptapalooza's website.)
We actively push the Semifinalists, Finalists, Runners-Up and Winners for a full year with the intention of creating opportunities for the writers. We are a hands on competition because we feel it is important to continue supporting the top scripts beyond the cash and prizes. No other competition in the world does that.
We are proud to present the competition with Write Brothers, a company that not only provides the necessary tools for writing but is an advocate and true supporter of emerging writers. Show More
Deadline/Entry Fees
| Deadline | Date Days till: |
Entry Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Early-bird | December 1, 2025 | $45 (features) $25 (shorts) |
| Regular | January 5, 2026 | $50 (features) $30 (shorts) |
| Late | February 2, 2026 | $55 (features) $35 (shorts) |
| FINAL DEADLINE | March 2, 2026 27 |
$60 (features) $40 (shorts) |
| LAST MINUTE DEADLINE | April 6, 2026 62 |
$65 (features); $45 (shorts) |
We now accept SHORT screenplays, under 50 pages in length.
Notification: August 15, 2026
Eligibility
Open to all writersRules
This competition is open to any writer, 18 or older without produced feature film credits. Entering the competition constitutes permission to use the winners' names and likenesses for publicity and promotions with no additional compensation. We reserve the right to publicize and promote any and all progress, development and success of the entered scripts.
- Any script from any genre will be considered.
- Multiple entries are accepted, provided a signed entry form and appropriate entry fee is attached to each submission.
- Multiple authorship is acceptable. If the screenplay wins an award, that award will be divided among the writers, by the writers.
- Screenplays must be the original work of the author.
- Scriptapalooza recommends registering your scripts with the WGA or copyrighting your material with the Library of Congress.
- Entry must be accompanied by the following:
a. completed official entry form (photocopies are acceptable)
b. the appropriate entry fee
c. completed original feature screenplay
Awards
Awards for FEATURES competition:First Place Winner
- $10,000 Cash
- Access to over 150 producers thru Scriptapalooza’s Network
- Writer’s Studio from Write Brothers (Outline 4D, Movie Magic Screenwriter and Dramatica Pro)
- 1 year of International Screenwriters’ Association Connect Membership
- 6 month online subscription from Backstage
- 5 CoverFly tokens for peer feedback on your script
- InkTip Script Listing & InkTip Magazine Listing
Second Place Winner
- Access to over 150 producers thru Scriptapalooza’s Network
- Writer’s Studio from Write Brothers (Outline 4D, Movie Magic Screenwriter and Dramatica Pro)
- 1 year of International Screenwriters’ Association Connect Membership
- 6 month online subscription from Backstage
- 5 CoverFly tokens for peer feedback on your script
- InkTip Script Listing & InkTip Magazine Listing
Third Place Winner
- Access to over 150 producers thru Scriptapalooza’s Network
- Writer’s Studio from Write Brothers (Outline 4D, Movie Magic Screenwriter and Dramatica Pro)
- 1 year of International Screenwriters’ Association Connect Membership
- 6 month online subscription from Backstage
- 5 CoverFly tokens for peer feedback on your script
- InkTip Script Listing & InkTip Magazine Listing
10 Runners-Up
- Access to over 150 producers thru Scriptapalooza’s Network
- Writer’s Studio from Write Brothers (Outline 4D, Movie Magic Screenwriter and Dramatica Pro)
- Hollywood Screenwriting Directory from The Writers Store
- 1 year of International Screenwriters’ Association Connect Membership
All 30 Finalists
- Access to over 150 producers thru Scriptapalooza’s Network
- Receive Movie Magic Screenwriter and Dramatica Writer’s Dreamkit from Write Brothers
- 1 year of International Screenwriters’ Association Connect Membership
- 1st Place Prize - $2000 Cash
- Access to over 150 producers thru Scriptapalooza's Network
- 2nd Place Prize
- Access to over 150 producers thru Scriptapalooza's Network
- 3rd Place Prize
- Access to over 150 producers thru Scriptapalooza's Network
- 5 Finalists
- Access to over 150 producers thru Scriptapalooza's Network
- 8 Semifinalists
- Access to over 150 producers thru Scriptapalooza's Network
- 15 Quarterfinalists
- Access to over 150 producers thru Scriptapalooza's Network
Scriptapalooza Features/Shorts
Contact
Hollywood, CA 90046
(310) 565.3420 (voice)
Web:
http://www.scriptapalooza.com
Email:
info@scriptapalooza.com
Contact: Mark Andrushko, President and CEO
Report Card |
||
| Overall: |
|
(5.0/5.0) |
| Professionalism: |
|
(4.5/5.0) |
| Feedback: |
|
(4.1/5.0) |
| Signficance: |
|
(4.8/5.0) |
| Report Cards: |
|
|
|
Have you entered?
Submit a Report card
|
||
Related Contests
Categories
Contest Comments
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Scriptapalooza Features & Shorts Competition
Contact
Hollywood, CA 90046
(310) 565.3420 (voice)
Web:
http://www.scriptapalooza.com
Email:
info@scriptapalooza.com
Contact: Mark Andrushko, President and CEO
Report Card |
||
| Overall: |
|
(5.0/5.0) |
| Professionalism: |
|
(4.5/5.0) |
| Feedback: |
|
(4.1/5.0) |
| Signficance: |
|
(4.8/5.0) |
| Report Cards: |
|
|
|
Have you entered?
Submit a Report card
|
||
Related Contests
Categories
Contest News
From Scriptapalooza to Festival Premiere
Early-career screenwriters often enter competitions as a way to gauge where their work fits within the industry.
In 2010, screenwriter Vasilios Bouzas submitted his script The Curse to several U.S.-based competitions after researching the field and identifying Scriptapalooza as a long-running and well-established program. The submission was made on March 29, 2010. 
The script did not advance to the quarterfinal round, but the experience proved memorable for Bouzas. After following up with the competition regarding his submission, Contest Director Mark Andrushko responded directly.
"That gesture meant the world to me," Bouzas says. "It showed me that Mark genuinely cares about every writer who enters his competition - even complete newcomers."
For Bouzas, the response stood out less as validation than as an example of how some competitions engage with writers at early stages. "That personal touch gave me faith and confidence to continue pursuing writing," he adds.
In subsequent years, Bouzas came to view Scriptapalooza as more than a contest submission point. "They didn’t just run a competition - they helped launch my career in the industry," he says. "In many ways, they’ve been like a big brother in this business, offering feedback, answering questions, and being present when guidance was needed."
Deathkeeper
Bouzas's most recent produced work is Deathkeeper, a supernatural thriller built around a stark moral exchange:He can save a life by touch, but doing so causes him to age.The film was directed by Tristan Barr and stars Charles Cottier as Luke, alongside George Pullar as Makagor.
To reverse the process, he must take a life.
Worldwide sales are being handled by SC Films International (Simon Crowe).
Deathkeeper will have its world premiere at the Glasgow Film Festival – FrightFest on March 7, 2026.
Taken together, Bouzas's trajectory—from early competition submissions to a festival premiere—reflects a path familiar to many working screenwriters: incremental progress, intermittent encouragement, and long stretches of development between visible milestones.
Updated: 02/03/2026
Scriptapalooza Features & Shorts Competition
Contact
Hollywood, CA 90046
(310) 565.3420 (voice)
Web:
http://www.scriptapalooza.com
Email:
info@scriptapalooza.com
Contact: Mark Andrushko, President and CEO
Report Card |
||
| Overall: |
|
(5.0/5.0) |
| Professionalism: |
|
(4.5/5.0) |
| Feedback: |
|
(4.1/5.0) |
| Signficance: |
|
(4.8/5.0) |
| Report Cards: |
|
|
|
Have you entered?
Submit a Report card
|
||
Related Contests
Categories
Submit Report Card
You must login to read or submit report cards.
First-time user? Register now to receive FREE email contest updates, news, results, deadline reminders and more. Rest assured, information submitted here is held in strict confidence. MovieBytes never sells or in any way distributes email names or addresses. We promise!
